Arizona man gets 35-year prison term in death of stepchild
KINGMAN, Ariz. — A man who killed one stepchild and abused two others in northwest Arizona was given a 35-year prison term Monday.
Matthew Smith, 31, Mohave Valley, was sentenced in Phoenix by U.S. District Judge Paul G. Rosenblatt.
Smith pled guilty in August to second-degree murder, child abuse and assault. The U.S. attorney for Arizona a 2-year-old girl died of blunt force trauma and other injuries when assaulted by Smith in his home on the Fort Mojave Indian Reservation in July 2012.
Public affairs officer Cosme Lopez said a second child in the home suffered permanent injury from being left in a bathroom without food or water for abouttwo days. He said investigators determined Smith was also responsible for a broken arm suffered by a third child in the home.
Rosenblatt ordered Smith to pay $250,193 in restitution and be supervised for five years after his release from prison.
